Wafer Thin Decisions

I have a guilty habit: when walking home I often stop off at one of the 25 delis that I pass on my walk to and from the subway and grab a package of those delicious, vanilla-filled wafer cookies.

This usually happens at the end of a busy day and the snack always helps to take the edge off before jumping on the train to head home. Today was definitely one of those days and after stopping off at the bodega, I managed to approach the station just as the last car of the train was leaving.

As I chowed down on the wafery goodness, a blatantly obvious thought occurred to me. Not only is this keeping me from getting my weight back under control1, but what seemed like an minor decision at the time would have major implications on the rest of my day.

By missing the train, I added at least 10-15 minutes to my commute, which keeps my wife from leaving for her well-deserved night out and takes time away from enjoying the last bits of daylight with my three-year-old in our backyard.

Did the delay change my life in any kind of dramatic way? No. But it’s not the dramatic changes that make the difference at the end of the day.

Oftentimes, I get so obsessed with big decisions that I ignore the cumulative impact of my smaller choices. This tends to be especially true when we are talking about a decision that will incrementally detract from my life while exponentially adding to my waistline.

Lately, I’ve been looking at the larger choices in my life. Maybe, just maybe, I am going about it all wrong and I’d be far better off examining the little missteps that I continue to make every single day.

It’s a lot to digest2 over a train ride, but one thing is for sure: it’s time to start walking past the wafers…

5 Responses to Wafer Thin Decisions

Awesome Post. Best thing I’ve read on a blog in a very long time. Hit home & loved the message behind the story. A small but powerful message, that holds true in every aspect of our lives. & I also love Milanos. Unfortunately, I indulge them as often as I can. Time to start thinking wheat thins as a nice replacement. Once again, thanks for the great piece. Definitely a great one.

Wow Dan, seriously big compliment there! Totally hear you on the Milanos, but the small packs they have in deli’s never quite satiate the fatty That said, need to get over all of them and hit up some wheat things with you (then again you need to gain the weight).

Thanks Gini, and seriously, thanks for all of the support lately! It’s kind of funny, my thoughts usually tend to be reductive… See something and try to squeeze some juice out of it. This was kind of the first one where I felt it was a little thing with a bigger idea behind it. Glad you noticed

Right on Mike. I feel like I’m in the same mental place. It’s the first small steps that get us pointed in the right direction. Now all we have to do is take those steps. Good luck to you, I know I’m going to need it!

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Hi, I'm Michael Schechter. I struggle with creativity and productivity (Read: I have ADHD). I tend to write about how we can improve at both pursuits through the use of technology. More often than not, I end up rambling on about how all kinds of Apple geekery are helping me get my life together...

I also steal and share your best ideas and quotes on my Tumblr blog, Smarter Than I Am.